President Moon Jae-in held the first press conference of 2018 at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae at 10 a.m. Wednesday. The following are key comments he made during the conference.
DOMESTIC POLITICS
"The government will tighten the crackdown on the illegalities of chaebol."
"The Constitution is a bowl that holds the daily lives of the people. Our people's thoughts about the government's responsibility and role and the people's rights have changed dramatically from 30 years ago. We cannot uphold the thoughts of the people with an old constitution that is 30 years old."
"Holding the vote on a constitutional amendment along with the local elections is a promise we made to the people. It is also the way to reduce our social cost."
"I again ask the National Assembly to take the lead. I urge (the parliament) to reach an agreement on a constitutional revision."
"The government may have to spearhead the constitutional revision should parliament fail to lead."
NORTH KOREA
South Korea has no plans to ease sanctions on North Korea against international moves.
Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula is "the path to peace and our goal."
Moon said he will push for more talks and cooperation with North Korea to resolve the nuclear standoff.
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"We need to continue efforts to hold a peace Olympics ... We need to peacefully resolve the North Korean nuclear issue."
"There must never be another war on the Korean Peninsula. The ultimate goal of our foreign and defense policies is to prevent a recurrence of war on the Korean Peninsula."
"Sanctions will remain in place unless North Korea changes."
"Under the right conditions, I can hold a summit at any time … But it cannot be a meeting for a meeting's sake. To hold a summit, the right conditions must be created and certain outcomes must be guaranteed."
COMFORT WOMEN
Moon says the "comfort women" issue can only be truly resolved with Japan's sincere apology.
"We cannot deny the fact that South Korea and Japan have reached an official agreement. Keeping a good relationship with Japan is also very important. But an erroneous knot must be undone."
"The government will work to restore the honor and dignity of the victims. It will take measures that can heal the wounds in their minds."
"I also wish to be true friends with Japan ... we will work to improve ties by separating historical issues and the countries' future-oriented cooperation."
"I am confident the countries will be able to work closely together on not only the North Korean nuclear issue, but also in various other areas when the South Korea-Japan relationship moves toward the future."
UAE CONTROVERSY
Moon says he "will seek to revise defense agreements with the UAE should there be any flaws."
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